12 December 6, 2015, Matthew 3;1-12, The Way Prepared

Matthew 3:1-12
The Way Prepared
December 6, 2015
First Baptist Church
Jackson, Mississippi
USA

What’s the number one thing?

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The Glory of God!

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1 Corinthians 10:31 NKJV
31 Therefore, whether you eat or drink, or
whatever you do, do all to the glory of
God.

December Memory Verse
Luke 2:14 NKJV
“Glory to God in the highest, And
on earth peace, goodwill toward
men.”

Keyboards at Christmas
Sunday, December 20, 2015
6:00 pm - 8:00 pm

Christmas Eve Service
Thursday, December 24
Sanctuary—5:00 p.m.

One Worship Service
Sunday, December 29 at 10:30 a.m.
No Sunday School or
Evening Activities or
Evening Worship Service.

Please Pray For
The Pastor Search Committee
Ross Aven Rodney DePriest
Laurel Ditto Susan Lindsay
Chris Maddux JoeYoung
Paul Moak, Jr. (Chairman)

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French Camp Academy

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Share your faith with one person each month
and build a relationship with them, so they will
not only become a disciple – but a disciple
maker themselves.
Luke 19:11-27

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How have you seen God at work
during the week?

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Sunday

Matthew 1:18-25
The King Arrives
December 13, 2015
First Baptist Church
Jackson, Mississippi
USA

TODAY
Matthew 3:1-12
The Way Prepared

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Ray Stedman 1917-1992
The 400Years Between the
Old and NewTestaments

Malachi 4:5-6 NKJV
5 “See, I will send the prophet Elijah to you
before that great and dreadful day of the
LORD comes. 6 He will turn the hearts of
the parents to their children, and the
hearts of the children to their parents; or
else I will come and strike the land with
total destruction.”

At the close of the book of Malachi in
the OldTestament, the nation of Israel
is back again in the land of Palestine
after the Babylonian captivity, but
they are under the domination of the
great world power of that day, Persia
and the Medio-Persian empire.

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In Jerusalem, theTemple had been restored,
although it was a much smaller building than
the one that Solomon had built and decorated
in such marvelous glory.

There was no king on the throne of Israel,
they were a puppet nation, under the
domination of Persia.
Nevertheless, although they were beset
with weakness and formalism as the
prophets have shown us, the people were
united.

There were no political schisms or factions
among them, nor were they divided into
groups or parties.
Now when you open the NewTestament
to the book of Matthew, you discover an
entirely different atmosphere---a different
world.

Rome is now the dominant power of the
earth as the center of power has shifted
from the East to theWest.
Palestine is still a puppet state---the Jews
never did regain their own sovereignty---
but now there is a king on the throne.

But this king is the descendant of Esau
instead of Jacob, and his name is Herod
the Great.
Furthermore, the high priests who now sit
in the seat of religious authority in the
nation are no longer from the line of
Aaron.

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They cannot trace their descendancy back,
rather, they are hired priests to whom the office
is sold as political patronage.

TheTemple is still the center of Jewish
worship, although the building has been
partially destroyed and rebuilt six times
since the close of the OT.
The synagogues have sprung up in every
Jewish city & are the center of Jewish life
more so than theTemple.

At this time the people of Israel were
split into three major parties.
Two of them, the Pharisees and
Sadducees, were much more
prominent than the third smaller
group, the Essenes.

What happened in these four hundred so-
called "silent" years after the last of the
inspired prophets spoke and the first of
the NT writers began to write?
There is a phrase in Galatians that says,
"When the time had fully come, God sent
forth his Son...Galatians 4:4.

The time of our Lord's birth was God's
appointed hour, the moment for which
God had been long preparing.
Exciting preparations took place during
that time of "silence," and we will
understand our NT much better if we
understand these historic events.

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God rearranged the scenes of history, much as
a stage crew will rearrange the stage sets after
the curtain has fallen, and when the curtain
rises again there is an entirely new setting.

Up to this time, Babylon had been the
major world power, but this was soon
succeeded by the Medio-Persian
empire which had been predicted by
the prophet Daniel, who said that
there would rise up a bear who was
higher on one side than the other.

Daniel signified this division between Media
and Persia, with the Persians the predominant
ones (Daniel 7:5).
At the height of the Persian power there arose
in the country of Macedonia (which we now
know as Greece) north of the Black Sea, a man
named Philip of Macedon who united the
islands of Greece and became their ruler.

His son was destined to become one
of the great world leaders of all time,
Alexander the Great!

In 330 B.C. a battle between the Persians
and the Greeks entirely altered the course
of history.
Twenty-year-old Alexander led the armies
of Greece in victory over the Persians and
then completely demolished the power of
Persia (Iran).

He was undefeated in battle and is
widely considered one of history's
most successful military commanders.
During his youth, Alexander was
tutored by the philosopherAristotle
until the age of 16.

The center of world power then shifted
more to the west into Greece, and the
Grecian empire was born.
A year after that historic battle, Alexander
the Great led his armies down into the
Syrian world toward Egypt.

On the way, he planned to lay siege to
the city of Jerusalem but as the
victorious armies of the Greeks
approached the city (according to the
Jewish historian, Josephus) word was
brought to the Jews in Jerusalem that
the armies were on their way.

The high priest at that time, who was a godly
old man by the name of Jaddua (mentioned in
the Bible in the book of Nehemiah), took the
sacred writings of Daniel the prophet
(chapter 8) and, accompanied by a host of
other priests dressed in white garments, went
forth and met Alexander some distance
outside the city.

Alexander left his army and hurried to meet this
body of priests and he told the high priest that
he had had a vision the night before in which
God had shown him an old man, robed in a
white garment, who would show him
something of great significance to himself, and
according to the account, the high priest then
opened the prophecies of Daniel and read them
to Alexander.

In the prophecies Alexander was able
to see the predictions that he would
become that notable ram with the
horn in his forehead, who would come
from theWest and smash the power
of Medio-Persia and conquer the
world.

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He was so overwhelmed by the
accuracy of this prophecy and, of
course, by the fact that it spoke about
him, that he promised that he would
save Jerusalem from siege, and sent
the high priest back with honors.

Alexander died in 323 B.C. and after
his death, his empire was torn with
dissension, because he had left no
heir.
• His son had been murdered earlier,
so there was no one to inherit the
empire of Alexander.

The four generals that had led Alexander's
armies divided his empire between
themselves.
One was Ptolemy, who gained Egypt and
the northern African countries; the other
was Seleucus, who gained Syria, to the
north of Palestine.

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For the next one hundred years, Palestine was
caught in the meat-grinder of the conflicts
between Syria on the north and Egypt on the
south.

Daniel (chapter 11) was able by
inspiration of the Holy Spirit, to give
an amazingly accurate and detailed
account of the highlights of these
years of conflict between the king of
the North (Syria) and the king of the
South (Egypt).

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Those prophecies have long since been
fulfilled once (near) and will be fulfilled again
soon (far). (Isis)

During this time, Grecian influence was
becoming strong in Palestine.
A party arose among the Jews called the
Hellenists, who were very eager to bring
Grecian culture and thought into the
nation and to liberalize some of the Jewish
laws.

This forced a split into two major
parties because there were those who
were strong Hebrew nationalist, who
wanted to preserve everything
according to the Mosaic order.

They resisted all the foreign influences
that were coming in to disrupt the old
Jewish ways.
This party became known as the
Pharisees, which means "to separate";
they were the separationists who insisted
on preserving traditions.

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They grew stronger and stronger, becoming
more legalistic and rigid in their requirements,
until they became the target for some of the
most scorching words our Lord ever spoke.

They had become religious hypocrites,
keeping the outward form of the law,
but completely violating its spirit.
On the other hand, the Hellenists---the
Greek lovers---became more influential
in the politics of the land.

They formed the party that was known in
NT days as the Sadducees, the liberals.
They turned away from the strict
interpretation of the law and became the
rationalists of their day, ceasing to believe
in the supernatural in any way.

We are told in the NT that they came
again and again to the Lord with
questions about the supernatural, like
"What will happen to a woman who
has been married to seven different
men? In the resurrection, whose wife
will she be?" (Matthew 22:23-33)

They did not believe in a resurrection, but
in these questions they were trying to put
Jesus on the spot.
A little later on, about 203 B.C., a king
named Antiochus the Great came into
power in Syria, to the north of Palestine.

He captured Jerusalem from the Egyptians
and began the reign of Syrian power over
Palestine.
One of his sons, Antiochus Epiphanes
(which means “the mad man”), became
one of the most vicious persecutors the
Jews have known.

In fact, he is often called the Antichrist of
the OldTestament since he fulfills some of
the predictions of Daniel concerning the
coming of one who would be "a
contemptible person" and a "vile king."
He was a picture of the Antichrist who is to
come.

His first act was to depose the high
priest in Jerusalem, thus ending the
long line of succession which began
with Aaron and his sons and carried
on down through the many centuries
of Jewish life.

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Antiochus Epiphanes sold the
priesthood to Jason, who was not of
the priestly line.

Epiphanes overthrew the God-
authorized line of priests and under
his reign the city of Jerusalem and all
the religious rites of the Jews began
to deteriorate as they came fully
under the power of the Syrian king.

In 171 B.C. Antiochus invaded Egypt
and once again Palestine was caught
in the nutcracker of rivalry.
Israel is the most fought-over country
in the world, and Jerusalem is the
most captured city in all history.

Jerusalem has been pillaged, ravished,
burned and destroyed more than
27 times in its history.
While Antiochus was in Egypt, it was
reported that he had been killed in
battle, and Jerusalem rejoiced.

The people organized a revolt and
overthrew Menelaus, the pseudo-
priest.

When report reached Antiochus (who
was very much alive in Egypt) that
Jerusalem was delighted at the report
of his death, he organized his armies
and swept like a fury back across the
land, falling upon Jerusalem with
terrible vengeance.

Guided by the treacherous Menelaus,
he intruded into the very Holy of
Holies in theTemple itself.

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When he forced his way into the Holy of Holies,
he destroyed the scrolls of the law and, to the
absolute horror of the Jews, took a sow and
offered it upon the sacred altar.

Then with a broth made from the flesh of
this unclean animal, he sprinkled
everything in the temple, thus completely
defiling and violating the sanctuary.
It is very difficult for us to grasp how
horrifying this was to the Jews.

They were appalled that anything like
this could ever happen to their sacred
Temple.

It was that act of defiling the temple which is
referred to by the Lord Jesus as the
"desolating sacrilege" that Daniel had
predicted (Matt. 24:15), and which also
became a sign of the coming desolation of
theTemple when Antichrist himself will enter
the temple, call himself God, and thus defile
theTemple again.

As we know from the NewTestament,
that still lies in the future.

Daniel the prophet had said the sanctuary
would be polluted for 2300 days. (Daniel
8:14)
In perfect accordance with that prophecy,
it was exactly 2300 days---six and a half
years---before theTemple was cleansed.

It was cleansed under the leadership
of a man now famous in Jewish
history, Judas Maccabaeus.
He was one of the priestly line who,
with his father and four brothers, rose
up in revolt against the Syrian king.

They summoned the Israelites to
follow them into action and in a series
of pitched battles in which they were
always an overwhelming minority,
overthrew the power of the Syrian
kings, captured Jerusalem, and
cleansed theTemple.

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The day they cleansed theTemple was named
the Day of Dedication, and it occurred on the
25th day of December.

On that date Jews still celebrate the Feast
of Dedication each year.
During the days of the Maccabbees there
was a temporary overthrow of foreign
domination, which is why the Jews look
back to this time and regard it with such
tremendous veneration.

During this time, one of the
Asmonean priests made a league with
the rising power in theWest, Rome.
He signed a treaty with the Senate of
Rome, providing for help in the event
of Syrian attack.

Though the treaty was made in all
earnestness and sincerity, it was this pact
which introduced Rome into the picture
and history of Israel.
As the battles between the two opposing
forces waged hotter and hotter, Rome was
watchful.

Finally, the Governor of Idumea, a
man named Antipater and a
descendant of Esau, made a pact with
two other neighboring kings and
attacked Jerusalem to try to
overthrow the authority of the
Asmonean high priest.

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This battle raged so fiercely that finally
Pompey, the Roman general, who had an army
in Damascus at the time, was besought by both
parties to come and intervene.

One side had a little more money than
the other, and persuaded by that
logical argument, Pompey came
down from Damascus, entered the
city of Jerusalem---again with terrible
slaughter---overthrew the city and
captured it for Rome.

That was in 63 B.C. and from that time on,
Palestine was under the authority and
power of Rome.
Pompey and the Roman Senate appointed
Antipater as the Procurator of Judea, and
he in turn made his two sons kings of
Galilee and Judea.

The son who became king of Judea is
known to us a Herod the Great.
Meanwhile, the pagan empires
around had been deteriorating and
disintegrating.

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Their religions had fallen upon evil days and the
people were sick of the polytheism and
emptiness of their pagan faiths.

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The Jews had gone through times of pressure
and had failed in their efforts to re-establish
themselves, and had given up all hope.

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There was a growing air of expectancy that the
only hope they had left was the coming at last
of the promised Messiah.

In the east, the oriental empires had
come to the place where the wisdom
and knowledge of the past had
disintegrated and they too were
looking for something.

When the moment came when the
star arose over Bethlehem, the wise
men of the east who were looking for
an answer to their problems saw it
immediately and came out to seek the
One it pointed to.

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Thus, "when the time had fully come, God
sent forth His Son." Galatians 4:4

"Now when Jesus was born in
Bethlehem of Judea in the days of
Herod the King, behold, wise men
from the East came to Jerusalem
saying, 'Where is HeWho has been
born King of the Jews?'"
(Matthew 2:1-2a)

It is amazing how God utilizes history
to work out His purposes.

Though we are living in the days that might
be termed "the silence of God," when for
over 2,000 years there has been no inspired
voice from God, we must look back---even
as they did during those 400 silent years---
upon the inspired record and realize that
God has already said all that needs to be
said, through the Old and NewTestaments.

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God's purposes have not ended, for sure; He is
working them out as fully now as He did in
those days.

Just as the world had come to a place
of hopelessness then, and the One
Who would fulfill all their hopes came
into their midst, so the world again is
facing a time when despair is
spreading widely across the earth.

Hopelessness is rampant everywhere and in this
time God is moving to bring to fulfillment all the
prophetic words concerning the coming of His Son
again into the world to establish His kingdom.
How long?
How close?
God knows!

But what God has done in history, He will
do again as we approach the end of “the
silence of God.”
We are constantly encouraged as we see
the fact that our faith is grounded upon
historic things; that it touches history on
every side.

As we exercise the faith God has already
blessed us with, may we grow strong and
be powerful lighthouses as we see the
despair increasing around us, the shaking
of foundations, the changing of that which
has long been taken to be permanent, the
overthrowing of empires and the rising of
others.

God is the OneWho does not change.
The OneWhose word is eternal.
As the Lord Jesus Himself said,
"Heaven and Earth shall pass away,
but My word shall never pass away."

Matthew 3:1-12
The Way Prepared

Matthew 3:1-12 NKJV
John the Baptist Prepares the Way
1 In those days John the Baptist came
preaching in the wilderness of Judea,
2 and saying, “Repent, for the
kingdom of heaven is at hand!”

3 For this is he who was spoken of by the
prophet Isaiah, saying:
“The voice of one crying in the
wilderness:
‘Prepare the way of the LORD;
Make His paths straight.’”

4 Now John himself was clothed in
camel’s hair, with a leather belt
around his waist; and his food was
locusts and wild honey. 5Then
Jerusalem, all Judea, and all the
region around the Jordan went out to
him

6 and were baptized by him in the Jordan,
confessing their sins.
7 But when he saw many of the Pharisees
and Sadducees coming to his baptism, he
said to them, “Brood of vipers!Who
warned you to flee from the wrath to
come?

8Therefore bear fruits worthy of
repentance, 9 and do not think to say
to yourselves, ‘We have Abraham as
our father.’ For I say to you that God is
able to raise up children to Abraham
from these stones.

10 And even now the ax is laid to the
root of the trees.Therefore every tree
which does not bear good fruit is cut
down and thrown into the fire.

11 I indeed baptize you with water unto
repentance, but HeWho is coming
after me is mightier than I,Whose
sandals I am not worthy to carry. He
will baptize you with the Holy Spirit
and fire.

12 His winnowing fan is in His hand,
and He will thoroughly clean out His
threshing floor, and gather His wheat
into the barn; but He will burn up the
chaff with unquenchable fire.”
Matthew 3:1-12 NKJV

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John MacArthur, Jr.
(born June 19, 1939)
Radio program: Grace toYou

"What makes a person great?"
In the world's eyes, such things as
being born into a famous, wealthy, or
influential family bring a certain
measure of greatness simply by
heritage.

Earning a great deal of money is
another mark of the world's
greatness, as are academic degrees,
expertise in some field, outstanding
athletic ability, artistic talent, high
political or military office, and other
such things.

By those criteria, however, even Jesus
Christ was not great.
Though He manifested surpassing
wisdom and power, He was born into
a quite ordinary family, His father
being a simple carpenter.

Even after He was grown, Jesus did not
own a business, a herd of cattle or sheep,
a house, or even a tent.
He said, "The foxes have holes, and the
birds of the air have nests; but the Son of
Man has nowhere to lay His head"
(Matthew 8:20).

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He had little, if any, formal education, no
political office, no artistic accomplishments - in
short, almost no marks of what the world
considers greatness.

John the Baptist had even fewer of
the world's marks of greatness than
did Jesus.
Yet Jesus called John the greatest
man who had ever lived until that
time:

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"Truly, I say to you, among those born of
women there has not arisen anyone greater
than John the Baptist" (Matthew 11:11).

John was greater than Noah,
Abraham, Isaac, Jacob, or Joseph;
greater than Moses, Elijah, David, or
any of the other OldTestament men
of God and he was greater than any of
the kings, emperors, philosophers, or
military leaders of history.

Yet, like Jesus, he was born into a simple,
obscure family.
His father, Zacharias, was one of many
priests who took turns ministering in the
Temple when their course, or division, was
scheduled to serve.

His mother, Elizabeth, was also from the
priestly tribe of Levi and a descendant of
the first high priest, Aaron (Luke 1:5).
But there were many such descendants,
most of whom had no place of special
dignity or recognition.

That was John's family heritage.
When he was grown, probably starting in
his teen years, John the Baptist went to
live in the wilderness of Judea, existing
much like a hermit and forsaking even
what little social and economic status he
had.

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Yet Luke recorded of him, "for he will be
great in the sight of the Lord" (Luke 1:15).

That was John.
His conception was miraculous, he was
filled with the Holy Spirit before he was
born, he was great in the sight of God, and
he was to be the herald of the Messiah,
announcing and preparing the people for
His coming.

Jesus said that no man born of woman
is greater than John the Baptist, that
is quite a statement. But He also said
that the least one in the Kingdom of
Heaven is greater than John. Least
means not all are equal and it also
means we are highly valued!

Matthew 3:1 NKJV
John the Baptist Prepares the Way
1 In those days John the Baptist came
preaching in the wilderness of Judea,

Preaching is from kerusso, the primary
meaning of which is "to herald."
It was used of the official whose duty it
was to proclaim loudly and extensively
the coming of the king (are we doing
that today?).

The King is coming back as you know!
John knew his position and his task.
He never sought or accepted honor
for himself, but only for the One
Whose coming he proclaimed.

As a child John no doubt had been
told many times of the angel's
announcement of his birth and his
purpose, a purpose from which he
never wavered, compromised, or tried
to gain personal recognition or
advantage.

When questioned by the priests and
Levites who had been sent from Jerusalem
to ask his identity, John replied, "I am not
the Christ" (John 1:19-20).
He also denied being Elijah and "the
Prophet" (John 1:21; Deut 18:15).

When they persisted in knowing who he
was, he simply said, "I am a voice of one
crying in the wilderness, 'Make straight
the way of the Lord,' as Isaiah the prophet
said" (John 1:23).
The question about his being Elijah
introduces some important truth.

At every orthodox Passover ceremony
even today a cup is reserved at the
table for Elijah.
At the circumcision of orthodox
Jewish baby boys a chair is placed for
Elijah.

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The anticipation is that, if Elijah would ever
come and sit in the chair or drink from the cup,
the Messiah's arrival would be imminent.

That belief is based on Malachi 4:5-6, in
which the prophet predicts, "Behold, I am
going to send you Elijah the prophet
before the coming of the great and
terrible day of the Lord. And he will
restore the hearts of the fathers to their
children, and the hearts of the children to
their fathers."

Yet, as he himself testified, John the
Baptist was not the literal, resurrected
Elijah most Jews of his day were
expecting, or that many Jews of our
own day expect.

John the Baptist was born of obscure
parents, dressed strangely even for
his day, and carried on his ministry
mostly in out-of-the-way and
unattractive places.

All of that, however, was not incidental or
circumstantial.
It was symbolic of John's ministry to call
the people away from the corrupt and
dead religious system of their day — away
from ritualism, worldliness, hypocrisy, and
superficiality.

John called them away from
Jerusalem and Jericho, away from the
cities into the wilderness — where
most people would not bother to go if
they were not serious seekers.

John brought them away, where they
were freer to listen, think, and ponder,
without the distractions and the
misleading leaders they were so
accustomed to following.

In such a seemingly desolate place,
they could begin to see the greatness
of this man of God and the even
greater greatness of the OneWhose
coming he announced.

If you don’t come apart and rest a
little while and focus on God, you may
just simply come apart.
A Bible that is falling apart usually
belongs to someone who isn’t.

THE MESSAGE
The message John proclaimed was
simple, so simple it could easily be
summarized in one word: Repent!
(Matthew 3:2; Acts 13:24; 19:4).

The Greek word (metanoeo) behind
repent means more than regret or
sorrow (Hebrews 12:17); it means to
turn around, to change direction, to
change the mind and will.

It does not denote just any change,
but always a change from the wrong
to the right, away from sin and to
righteousness.

In his outstanding commentary on
Matthew, John A. Broadus observes
that "wherever this Greek word is
used in the NewTestament the
reference is to changing the mind and
the purpose from sin to holiness."

Repentance involves sorrow for sin,
but sorrow that leads to a change of
thinking, desire, and conduct of life.
"The sorrow that is according to the
will of God" Paul says, "produces a
repentance without regret, leading to
salvation" (2 Cor 7:10; cf. v. 9).

2 Corinthians 7:9b-10
9b your sorrow led you to repentance. For
you became sorrowful as God intended
and so were not harmed in any way by us.
10 Godly sorrow brings repentance that
leads to salvation and leaves no regret,
but worldly sorrow brings death.

John's command to repent could
therefore be rendered “be converted”.
John's message of preparation for the
coming of the King was repentance,
conversion, the demand for a
completely different life.

That must have been startling news
for Jews who thought that, as God's
chosen people — the children of
Abraham, the people of the covenant
— they deserved and were
unconditionally assured of the
promised King.

Knowing what they must have been
thinking, John later told his listeners,
"Do not suppose that you can say to
yourselves, 'We have Abraham for our
father'; for I say to you, that God is
able from these stones to raise up
children to Abraham" (Matthew 3:9).

http://2.bp.blogspot.com/--t-NeeYqH_Q/Ty_WUL9PC5I/AAAAAAAAAZg/FyBZGEmUsPE/s1600/repentance-is-u-turning.jpg
Repentance was exactly the same message
with which Jesus began His preaching and the
apostles began theirs.

"The time is fulfilled, and the kingdom
of God is at hand," Jesus proclaimed;
"repent and believe in the Gospel"
(Matthew 3:2; 4:17; Mark 1:15; Luke
5:32).

http://3.bp.blogspot.com/--w611szijno/UvemcVOXR4I/AAAAAAAAB5I/67Y3gk2QByE/s1600/FBCOVER_WentOutPreachedRepent.jpg
Mark 6:12 says of the twelve: "And
they went out and preached that men
should repent."

In his Pentecost sermon, Peter's
concluding words were, "Repent, and
let each of you be baptized in the
name of Jesus Christ for the
forgiveness of your sins" (Acts 2:38;
Acts 3:19; 20:21; 26:18).

http://christiandfahey.files.wordpress.com/2013/07/chuck-missler.jpg
Chuck Missler

Matthew has a unique perspective on
Jesus Christ.
He focuses on the royalty, the
kingship, the Messiah of Israel and
gives His legal lineage to the throne.

Mark views Jesus as the Servant.
Luke sees Him as the Son of Man and
gives Jesus’ blood line to show how he
came to be the last Adam.
John calls Him as the Son of God.

John the Baptist was born into the
priesthood but he rejected it and went
out into the wilderness.
His ministry was outside the camp of
Israel as was the crucifixion of Jesus.

Salome’s mom got tired of John the
Baptist pointing out her adultery so
she had the voice of one crying in the
wilderness silenced.
That is also how ISIS is attempting to
silence the voice today (beheading).

The gospel according to John gives us
the name of the place where John was
baptizing – Bethabara – which means
“house of the ford, place of crossing
or the house of passage”.

John 1:28 NKJV
28These things were done in
Bethabara beyond the Jordan, where
John was baptizing.

It is the exact spot where Joshua
miraculously led Israel to cross the
Jordan River from the wilderness into
the Promised Land.

Joshua 2:1 NKJV
1Then Joshua son of Nun secretly sent
two spies from Shittim. “Go, look over
the land,” he said, “especially
Jericho.” So they went and entered
the house of a prostitute named
Rahab and stayed there.

In Joshua 2, only two spies were sent
in to the Promised Land because
Joshua decided from his previous
experience that ten of the twelve
spies were unnecessary.

They did not bring back much
valuable military intelligence
information but the real reason that
God had them go in was to meet and
to save Rahab the harlot (she became
the mother of Boaz) - to preserve the
blood line of King David and Jesus!

Matthew 1:5-6 NKJV
5 Salmon begot Boaz by Rahab, Boaz
begot Obed by Ruth, Obed begot
Jesse, 6 and Jesse begot David the
king.

Joshua sent in two spies, two witnesses
ahead of time before taking the land.
That is a forerunner, a picture of the two
witnesses in the book of Revelation that
God will send to Earth before He retakes
the land prior to the Second Coming.

Matthew 3:9 NKJV
9 and do not think to say to
yourselves, ‘We have Abraham as our
father.’ For I say to you that God is
able to raise up children to Abraham
from these stones.

After the children of Israel entered the
Promise Land, they stacked up the 12
stones as a memorial of the crossing
of the Jordan on Passover, the 14th
day of the 1st month (Nisan).
Passover!

John the Baptist said behold, the
Lamb of God Who taketh away the
sins of the world.
He was referring to the Passover
Lamb!

http://rsc.byu.edu/sites/default/files/Seely%20Image%201%20copy.jpg

Joshua 5:13-15 NKJV
13 And it came to pass, when Joshua was
by Jericho, that he lifted his eyes and
looked, and behold, a Man stood opposite
him with His sword drawn in His hand. And
Joshua went to Him and said to Him, “Are
You for us or for our adversaries?”

14 So He said, “No, but as Commander of
the army of the LORD I have now come.”
And Joshua fell on his face to the earth
and worshiped, and said to Him, “What
does my Lord say to His servant?”

15Then the Commander of the LORD’s
army said to Joshua, “Take your
sandal off your foot, for the place
where you stand is holy.” And Joshua
did so.
Joshua 5:13-15 NKJV

In Joshua 5:14 we see that Jesus is the
OneWho led the battle of Jericho!
“Captain of the Host of the LORD” is
how the King JamesVersion states it.

Joshua worshipped Him.
Angels never allow themselves to be
worshipped, except one – Satan – and he got
cast out because he allowed it.
Take off your shoes because this place is holy.
Just like He said to Moses.

http://media-cache-ak0.pinimg.com/736x/b6/f0/61/b6f0615b0879b2b4720292e345e67115.jpg
Speaking of removing shoes – John the Baptist
said I am not worthy even to unloose His
sandal.

http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-shYGVrRn3Zk/UKDBoamAB6I/AAAAAAAACGE/9UKv9v5gSAA/s1600/Bild1.jpg
The Jericho account is a model of Jesus leading
the hosts to disposses the usurpers of the land.

His baptism symbolized only death to
sin until he introduced Jesus Christ
Who takes away the sins of the world.
Baptism in Jesus was a different thing
than John’s baptism.

The Jews listened to John and publically
identified their sin by being baptized.
TheTemple authorities sent out a research
team to ask John:
Are you the Messiah? No.
Are you Elijah? No.

http://images.faithclipart.com/images/3/1298508366798_124/slide-02.jpg
Are you the Prophet? No.
John then said, “I am the one preparing the way
for the Messiah.”

http://dennydewitt.files.wordpress.com/2013/08/img_0224.jpg
John then went on to call the Pharisees and the
Saducees “the generation of vipers” which is
referring to them as “sons of Satan” (Satan’s
offspring – Genesis 3).

“Who warned you to flee?” John was
mocking them because they were
unaware of their need for repentance and
were not there to repent.
The Pharisees and Saducees were there
for the wrong reason and John knew it.

The Pharisees were separatists – they
wanted to separate themselves from
unlawfulness.
The Pharisees were strict law keepers
and their group led to theTalmudic
Jews.

The Sadducees were modernist, liberal
humanists and their group became the
Father of the Reformed Jews.
The Sadducees did not believe anything
supernatural which included the
resurrection.

http://i.ytimg.com/vi/O2s7a2ANZxk/maxresdefault.jpg

https://year8religiousstudies.files.wordpress.com/2013/02/thing.jpg
What the Pharisees and Sadducees had in
common was that they failed to see their need
to be reconciled to God.

All through the Bible God is saying
two things to us:
1) We are imperfect.
2) There is nothing we can do about
it.

God’s way to forgiveness is through the
shedding of innocent blood.
Adam and Eve through self-effort tried to
cover themselves with fig leaves but God
killed an innocent lamb to cover their
nakedness with skins.

Cain through his self-effort (the flesh)
tried to bring a plant (that he raised)
sacrifice to God but it was unacceptable.
Abel offered a lamb which was acceptable
to God and it involved the shedding of
blood.

The cherubim guarded the way to the
Tree of Life (Jesus) not only so that
Adam could not live forever in his
fallen state but also so that Satan and
his offspring could not block the way
back to God when Adam was ready to
turn from his sin and be reconciled.

All through Scripture we see the slain
Lamb, from Genesis to Revelation 22!
Isaac was saved by the ram caught in
the thicket in Genesis 22.
The Passover Lamb in Exodus 12.

http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-knoFX3Xs0nQ/USrF2uxxiOI/AAAAAAAAIKI/U4mpCf4MMv8/s1600/jesus+is+the+only+way.jpg
God gave us the law in order to show us our
inadequacy, not to provide another means or
way for us to be saved.

Matthew 3:10 NKJV
10 And even now the ax is laid to the
root of the trees.Therefore every tree
which does not bear good fruit is cut
down and thrown into the fire.

Tree is bad because the root is bad –
God is not interested in repairing
man, He wants a new man!
The heart is incurably wicked, it is
incapable of being repaired, God
creates a new one.

http://media-cache-ec0.pinimg.com/736x/42/c2/73/42c273f880734e1e1d5ce272f737746b.jpg
Psalm 51:10 NKJV
10 Create in me a clean heart, O God,

Matthew 3:15 NKJV
15 But Jesus answered and said to him,
“Permit it to be so now, for thus it is
fitting for us to fulfill all
righteousness.”Then he allowed Him.

https://tse2.mm.bing.net/th?id=OIP.M8a7927aad428d911be840421af9b7f30H0&pid=15.1
Jesus became sin for us.
He told John that we (He and John the Baptist)
must fulfill all righteousness.

Jesus came to the Earth to be identified
with us, to take our place.
He took on Himself our sin to fulfill all
righteousness.
God said, “This is My beloved Son, in
Whom I am well pleased!”

He said it twice, here and in Matthew 17
on the Mount of Transfiguration.
This was the first step on Jesus’ public
ministry and God was pleased that He
identified with sinners so that He could
provide the innocent blood that God
required for us to be forgiven!

God was also pleased that Jesus
spent 30 of His 33 years on this Earth
as an example to us to get to know
God and to learn to love Him – before
doing something for God!
He was numbered with us.

http://www.kingjamesbibleonline.org/Inspirational-Images/large/John_1-1.jpg
John the Baptist was three months older than
Jesus yet he said that Jesus existed before he
did.

He said that he was not Elijah but he
did come in the spirit of Elijah.
John 1:6 NKJV
6There was a man sent from God,
whose name was John.

Even though Luke was Greek and
Matthew was Hebrew, Luke included
more of the OT in his writings than
Matthew did in his.
Luke, a Gentile, caught the phrase in
chapter 3 verse 6 “all flesh shall see the
salvation of God”.

All flesh, not just the Jews, so that was
important to Luke whereas Matthew did not
report that phrase.
This is where the OT actually ends, because in
Luke 16:16 it says “the law and the prophets
were until John”.
Since that time, from that time on…

One of the objectives of Sunday
School is to stimulate you to study the
Bible on your own.
It is important that a student of the
Bible gets the big picture, be able to
put all the pieces into perspective.

The OldTestament is a collection of:
• Unexplained ceremonies
• Unachieved purposes
• Unappeased longings
• Unfulfilled prophecies
Jesus consummates all of these

By itself, the OldTestament is incomplete.
In the OT is the NT concealed.
In the NT is the OT revealed.
God, give us no peace until we rest inYou!

The Plan of Hope & Salvation
John 3:16 NKJV
16 “For God so loved the world that He gave His only
begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him should
not perish but have everlasting life.”
John 14:6 NKJV
6 Jesus said to him, “I am the way, the truth, and the
life. No one comes to the Father except through Me.”

Romans 3:23 NKJV
23 for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God,
Romans 6:23a NKJV
23a For the wages of sin is death,
• Death in this life (the first death) is 100%.
• Even Jesus, the only one who doesn’t deserve death, died
in this life to pay the penalty for our sins.
• The death referred to in Romans 6:23a is the second
death explained in Revelation 21:8.

Revelation 21:8 NKJV
8 “But the cowardly, unbelieving, abominable,
murderers, sexually immoral, sorcerers, idolaters, and
all liars shall have their part in the lake which burns
with fire and brimstone, which is the second death.”
Romans 6:23b NKJV
23b but the gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our
Lord.

Romans 5:8 NKJV
8 But God demonstrates His own love toward us, in
that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us.
Revelation 21:7 NKJV
7 “He who overcomes shall inherit all things, and I will
be his God and he shall be My son.”
•Romans 10:9-10 explains to us how to be saved.

Romans 10:9-10 NKJV
9 that if you confess with your mouth the Lord Jesus
and believe in your heart that God has raised Him from
the dead, you will be saved. 10 For with the heart one
believes unto righteousness, and with the mouth
confession is made unto salvation.
Romans 10:13 NKJV
13 For “whoever calls on the name of the LORD shall be
saved.”

If you have questions or would like to know more,
Please, contact First Baptist Church Jackson at
601-949-1900 or
http://firstbaptistjackson.org/contact/

12 December 6, 2015, Matthew 3;1-12, The Way Prepared

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12 December 6, 2015, Matthew 3;1-12, The Way Prepared